Raven among Doves
by CuckooWolfie188188
Summary: They were survivors, escaping the genocide hat threatened their entire culture. Strung around all corners of the globe, the remaining augments are determined to find it, what ever the cost. Post ST:ID. Possible triggers for trauma. Major character death(s). Please read and review!
1. Chapter 1: Flying the nest

Isobel could not look back.

The image of the dying child was still vivid in her memory. Its empty eyes gazing imploringly at her as it lay in its own excrement. It was then Isobel realised that she could not stay. She would alert the police and leave. That was what Isobel had suspected for a long time, the Logan family snatched children. She clutched her over coat close to her body and bowed her head against the wind. It would be a long walk to the mountains and there was no guarantee that she could find shelter. But she had to try, no matter what it took out of her.

Isobel had planned the whole thing out: A maths genius who could make a working gun out of a few coke cans could prove very useful in the mountain towns around Lake Tahoe. Yes, that was it, make weapons and do plumbing, how quaint! No one would hear of Isobel Carys Harrity again.

**A/N**

**I've edited this chapter a bit to make it a little better. The first chapter is the hardest to get right. Please continue reading and let me know what you think.**


	2. Chapter 2: The hills are alive

Isobel was freezing. There had been rain the previous night, bucket loads of it. Everything around Isobel was utterly sodden. The rain had seeped through her rucksack ruining everything inside: The dollar bills she had sealed in a (supposedly) waterproof bag were invalid, her spare clothes where frozen and her food squirted water when prodded. "Oh shit!" Half of her ammunition was now rendered useless. But one thing cheered Isobel up a great deal, her gun was still working. It was a small gun measuring 33 calibre around the barrel and remarkably light. That gun felt like family to Isobel, it was the first working gun she had built and had helped her out many times. But now the gun would be even more important, it would save her life.

Isobel froze. She could hear voices behind her. They were probably just ramblers out for the day but Isobel had to be certain. She carefully manoeuvred herself up and took a quick glance behind the tree. Seven men were trudging wearily up the slope towards her, deep in conversation. Straining her ears, Isobel managed to hear a couple of scraps of information.

"You sure the Britisher came this way?"

"Ja!" Isobel was surprised to hear a German accent. "Ze last sieghteeng vas vesterday, here."

"Let's just get 'er and be done with i'!" One of the men lost his patients and fired his gun at a nearby tree, sending a pair of ground squirrels scampering into the undergrowth. That was too much for Isobel. That was not a gun that used bullets! That gun used light to destroy cells, a phaser! The chances of surviving being shot were less than 15%, and Isobel was afraid. Then she broke cover.

"Vat?" The German turned his head in surprise and peered through the cross-sights just a little too late as Isobel flitted out of shot. "Rrrun!" The rest of the men began to pelt down the steep slope after her, yelling angry commands at each other in their native languages.

The hill seemed to fall from Isobel's feet as she tore through the trees, sharp branches raking at her face and gnarled roots trying to trip her up. Normally she would have observed the magnificent mountains she was surrounded by but now her eyes were focused on the ground. Faster and faster Isobel ran: Blood roaring in her ears, adrenaline coursing through her veins and her heart trying to burst through her sternum. The terrain quickly changed making her slide around on some pebbles. She had forgotten that at the bottom of many valleys were rivers and this was no exception. Holding her rucksack above her head, Isobel ran into the water and began to trudge to the other side. She screamed as the current knocked off her feet and swept her into the rapids. At that moment Isobel cursed her weight, she cursed her idiocy, she cursed life. The water mercilessly bashed her against sharp, unforgiving rocks and tossed her around like a toddler having a tantrum. Isobel tried to swim but her feeble kicks were useless against the power of the water, in all her fourteen years Isobel had never learnt to swim!

"_Oh my God! Right, keep calm and-"_

"_YOU ARE GOING TO BLOODY WELL DIE ISSY!"_

It was impossible to think calmly. Isobel's last strands of resolve faded from her as she gave up.

**A/N**

**There we are! Over one hundred views in less than ten days! Thank you to everyone who had read this and Foxlover19 for their lovely comment. Please comment, they are the fuel to every writers fire and would be much appreciated.**


	3. Chapter 3: Lara

To Isobel's surprise, she woke up. She had not died in the river but had 'only' passed out. She was now sprawled on a clean white bed in a maritime themed room. Isobel coughed, a stream of water splattered onto her bed. On the wall hung a large television screen showing a tiny Swedish professor getting very excited about a new planetary system as jaunty accordion music floated in through the open window. Isobel (well aware of how much she stank) climbed out of bed and pocked her head out of the sash window to be greeted with the smell of slowly cooking crab. Another quick glance around confirmed where she was: San-Francisco, the hippie capital of Earth. She could not help but smile as she watched she spinner like drones glide around the vermillion pillars of The Golden Gate Bridge as glistening boats travelling two and from the great prison of Alcatraz. There she was: Isobel Raven Harrity, in San-Francisco! "Ah!" An English accented voice coming from behind Isobel chirped. "You're awake at last." The red haired woman who spoke dropped a couple of shopping bags on her own bed and turned off the television. "Good thing too," She sighed, "Much longer asleep and you'd be dead and I'd have wasted my money on these." She emptied one of the bags and threw a pile of clothes onto Isobel's bed. "Thought you'd want t' smarten up a bit."

"Isn't it customary to greet someone with a welcoming phrase?" Isobel snapped, "Especially when bearing gifts."

"Sorry." The woman said. "Hello!" She gingerly reached a hand out to Isobel for her to shake.

Isobel shook her head stubbornly. "Sorry, I'm not accepting that until I know who you are." These precautions were wholly nessesary, for all Isobel knew, this lady could be one of the Carson City police force.

"Lara Bowers."

Isobel nodded slowly and shook Lara's hand. "Isobel Raven Harrity."

"_Bloody hell Issy, you're supposed to be hiding!"_

"There," Lara soothed, "Not so difficult is it?" Isobel grunted indignantly in reply. Giving away personal details was difficult! What did Lara know about pain and suffering? She would never have had to sneak out of the house late at night to get to a food bank. No, she would probably not know what a food bank was. Sitting in her sterile office with a view over the bay, drinking champagne and watching an over budget chick-flick on a massive television. Probably.

Isobel's hands flew to her pockets. When she had fallen in the river she had her gun in there, not to mention her rucksack. She scampered around the room in a panic, throwing open draws and peering inside vases. "Where is it?" She muttered as she examined the back of one of the draws.

"Where's what?"

"My gun."

"What gun?" Lara tilted her head questioningly.

Isobel straightened up and thumped her fist on the desk. "When I came here I had a rucksack full of kit and a gun."

"No you didn't."

"What?" Isobel's face froze in a look of sheer horror.

Lara paused, wondering how she should explain it to the young English woman who was standing before her, bristling with hostility. "When you were found on the river bank the dogs searched you and-"

"They had dogs?" Isobel's voice became high pitched with fear. "Big brutish pit-bulls with-"

"Calm down!" Lara interjected. She bit her lip with guilt. "I didn't mean that kind of dog." She walked over to Isobel and put an arm around her shoulder. "Are you ok?" Isobel cast her eyes towards the deep azure carpet and rolled up her left trouser leg. Lara's eyes widened is surprise as she saw several punctures and scratches on Isobel's leg. "How?"

"There's more!" Isobel reached to roll up her sleeve but Lara stopped her, unwilling to see more wounds.

"Don't." She muttered. "Go and have a wash and get these on. The Admiral shall see you when you are ready." She handed Isobel the pile of clothes on her bed and pointed in the direction of the bathroom. "You stink!"

Half an hour later Isobel emerged from the bathroom wearing a thick brown jumper and a pair of black jeans that seemed a little baggy on her stick like figure. "You ready?" She said to Lara who grinned from beneath her grey cap.

"You look fantastic!"

Isobel raised one quizzical eyebrow slowly. "I certainly don't feel it." She backcombed her hair with her splayed fingers and picked at her nail absently.

"Well we can rub some mud on you later." Lara laughed as she opened the door, finished zipping her suitcase and pushed it out of the door.

"That's good." Isobel muttered as she followed Lara out of the hotel room and closed the door behind her. "Love the sarcasm."

**A/N**

**I'm sorry if this chapter did not seem particularly good. But it is necessary to provide a little bit of backing to the main story. Thank you once again to Foxlover19 for his/her continued support to this story. I promise we will soon be reacquainted with our favourite crew members! Please leave a little review in the box below, they are always appreciated! **


	4. Chapter 4

Lara led Isobel along Jefferson Street before turning up Leavenworth Street. "Thought I'd show you one of the San-Fran landmarks." She said as she hailed one of the city's yellow taxis. Isobel nodded, she had seen films where police men would chase the murderer down these stepped streets, getting airborne every now and again as the road flattened out. The two of them clambered into the taxi and Lara showed the driver a business card. "Headquarters please." She said as Isobel did up her seatbelt. The driver adjusted the gear and began to drive.

"Where are we going?"

"You'll see when we get there." Lara took out a data PADD from her inside pocket and began to send a message.

"Why can't you tell me?"

Lara slammed down her phone and sighed, "Look Issy, I just can't tell you."

"Don't call me Issy." Isobel snapped.

"Sorry." Lara finished her message and pocketed her PADD. "We should be there in a minute."

"Be where?" Isobel was staring absently out of the window at the brightly coloured houses on either side. They reminded Isobel of those you would find around a piazza in the lowlands of Italy, brightly coloured and cheerful. But a few moments later they gave way to great walls of concrete and steel. Lara gave the taxi driver a few directions and within five minutes they had arrived at a towering grey and white building.

"We're here!" Lara announced as she took her suitcase out of the boot and turned towards the building. Once inside, she lead Isobel through a labyrinth of passageways to a steel locker that Lara shoved her suitcase in.

"So why am I here?" Isobel said as she and Lara stopped outside a smart looking office.

"I guess I can tell you now." Lara sighed, straightening the bottle neck of Isobel's jumper. "We were contacted by the engineering department at Cambridge-"

"You know I lived in Cambridge?"

"Yes." Lara straightened her back, reached to open the plate-glass door and smiled jocundly at Isobel. "You ready?"

"As much as I'll ever be." Isobel looked nervously into Lara's eyes.

"That's the spirit!" Lara beamed at Isobel as she slid the door open ad ushered her inside.

"Please sit down." The man behind the desk said, Isobel doggedly obeyed. "It's good to see you Miss Bowers."

"Thank you Admiral." Lara smiled politely at the grey haired man behind the desk.

"Miss Harrity." The Admiral nodded in Isobel's direction. "Has Miss Bowers been good to you?" Isobel nodded slowly. "Good." He clapped his hands and Lara snapped to attention. "Miss Bowers, you may leave us now."

"Thank you sir." Lara dipped her heads with respect and left the room. Isobel resisted the urge to watch her go and leave her in the room with this stranger.

"Miss Harrity," The Admiral stared at Isobel with his cold, grey eyes. "Have you been told why you're here?" Isobel shook her head slowly. "Speak to me!"

"N-no Sir," Isobel stammered, "I was only told it was to do with Cambridge."

"Yes. Did Miss Bowers tell you that?"

"Yes Admiral. Just that, nothing else."

"I just wanted 'Yes' as an answer Miss Harrity."

"S-sorry Sir."

The Admiral took a file out of a draw and opened it on his desk. Placing his glasses on his nose, he sifted through the file until he found what he was looking for and held it up in front of his eyes. "They say you're smart kid. Really smart." Isobel smiled weakly. The Admiral seemed friendly enough despite his rough demeanour.

She lifted her head a little bit higher and stared into The Admiral's eyes. Isobel often did this when she was trying to make herself seem stronger than she really was. "Who told you that?"

"Professor Richard Kaskos, Head of engineering at Cambridge University in England. You used to go there in the evenings after school?"

"Yes Admiral."

"He wanted you to use your talent." The Admiral continued, "So he contacted us late last year and said that he wanted you to join us at Starfleet." Isobel's face lit up with surprise and delight. "Do you know what we are?"

Isobel nodded. "You're like NASA but you actually do stuff."

"Correct. You'll spend four years training in engineering before possibly being assigned to one of our ships." He paused and smiled at the 14 year old girl sitting stunned before him. "What do you say?"

Isobel began to nod frantically. "Yes, yesyesyes YES!" She started to flap her hands like an over excited penguin. "Thank you!" Then she stood up, thanked The Admiral again and scampered out of the room.

**A/N**

**I may have said in the previous chapter that I would introduce a character from the actual films. Sorry! I wrote it with Admiral Marcus and the continuity was a nightmare. The Admiral Isobel is talking to is actually an OC I created for continuity as both Marcus and Pike die in Star Trek: Into Darkness. Thank you for your continued support! I am sorry that it is starting off quite slow, these chapters are necessary to build up to the climax and are actually quite important. Happy Day of The Doctor everyone! **


	5. Chapter 5: The Enterprise

"We want you to work on _SS Enterprise_."

Isobel's face was still plastered in a wide grin. She could still hear Admiral Haynes' voice as he assigned Isobel, he seemed happy, almost proud. "You'll enjoy it." He said. Isobel did not doubt his words, Haynes had showed great faith in her by allowing her to enrol in the academy, risking alienating yet another genius from Starfleet.

"You ready?" One of the workers poked her head into the changing room.

"Of course!" Isobel finished tying her hair up and straightened her uniform. She had campaigned at the academy for engineers to be allowed to wear the traditionally male uniform: It was easier to work in and far more practical than the short skirts and high heels worn by women. Especially as engineering involved lots of running and fast thinking, not like piloting that involved being inactive for long periods of time.

The woman lead Isobel through the corridors of the complex and out on to the dusty wasteland of the launching pad. Isobel's breath caught in her throat, she had done research on she ship and seen pictures of it before, not like this though, nothing could have prepared her. "It's beautiful." She breathed, eyes wide as she tried to comprehend the sheer size of the ship.

"Meh." The woman sighed, "I've seen it all before." Isobel felt a little bit taken back. How would anyone fail to be amazed by the beauty of The _Enterprise _glistened in the sunlight.

Isobel was herded into a shuttle bus filled with men and women who she assumed would be her ship mates. She grasped the hand rail tight and planted her feet firmly on the floor only to be pushed backwards as the bus hummed into life. A ripple of laughter travelled through the bus. Isobel joined in, assuming that everyone was anticipating feeling similar when the shuttle left the atmosphere. The bus ground to a halt again, throwing the occupants to the front. "Still gets me." An English accented voice caught Isobel by surprise. "Seeing the ship, still shocks me how beautiful it is."

"Yeah." Isobel turned her head and smiled at the blonde haired woman standing behind her. "That's exactly what I thought."

"Oh!" The woman jumped. She and the rest of the crew began to plod methodically towards a small shuttle by the _Enterprise._ "Are you new then?"

"Yeah!" Isobel grinned at the woman and shook her shoulders with excitement. "First ship!"

"Well," The woman picked up pace and held her hand out to Isobel. "I'm Carol, Carol Marcus."

"Isobel Harrity." The two women shook hands. "Engineer to-"

"Next!" Isobel glanced nervously up at a tall man in front of her. "Come on." The voice grew harder and the man all the more serious.

"Umm." Isobel's voice trembled as she struggled to remember Lara's advice.

"_Stick out your chin, look 'em in the eye, let them know you mean business!"_

"Umm, Isobel Harrity, Engineer-"

"In you go." The man's eyes were fixated on his PADD.

"Rude." Isobel joined the line on officers climbing the stairs of the shuttle. Once inside, she glanced around for a free seat. She sat down next to a dark haired man who was looking very ill. He shuffled away from Isobel a little and leaned as far as he could over the floor. "Are you feeling ok?" She raised an eyebrow inquisitively.

"No." The man growled, he spoke with a strong southern drawl. "Are you blind or-"

"Well sorry!" Isobel snapped, glaring at the man. "Don't mind me for seeing if you were alright."

The man uttered something indecipherable under his breath and sat up straight. "I suffer from aviophobia, fear of-"

"Flying."

"I didn't know red-shirts were medical experts." The man scoffed sarcastically.

"I took medical studies along with my engineering."

"Oh." The man held out his hand in greeting. "McCoy, Leonard McCoy."

Isobel shook his hand firmly. "Isobel Har-" Sirens blared throughout the shuttle, cutting Isobel off in mid sentence. "Rude." Isobel muttered as the safety restraints clamped down over her shoulder. Bones swore. Then it started. There was a quiet hum as the engines fired up and a bang as they ignited. Isobel gritted her teeth as she and the others were pushed back into their chairs. She struggled to remember her training from all the simulations she had sat through.

"_Just breathe normally. The blood_ _will be forced to the back of your chair as you exit the Earths atmosphere. Try to keep your heart rate as low as possible, it will feel like hours but-"_

Before Isobel could finish her thoughts, the sensation finished and the lights came on as the door to the loading bay slid open. The whole shuttle seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. Isobel leaned forward and smiled at Bones weakly. "So, you weren't sick!"

"No," Bones snapped, "But I damn nearly was!" He shuddered as the blood gradually made its way back to his head.

"That's good." Isobel muttered, making her way out of the ship, to her new home.

**A/N  
There we are! I told you I would include some cannon characters. Thank you so much for all the support I have been getting, it makes so much difference to my motivation. Please continue your support!**


	6. Chapter 6: Core values

**A/N**  
**Wow! Fourteen reviews, two follows and two favourites! Thank you to everyone who has supported me in my work, I only want to create the best story possible for every Star Trek fan on the internet! Please continue your support, I will be glad of it!**

The loud beep of Isobel's alarm clock roused her rudely from her sleep.  
The groan of her room mate -Terri- joined the noise that finished with a thud as Terri swiped the clock onto the floor. The two of them lay in bed for a while, allowing their eyes to accustom to the gradually brightening lights. "Right!" Isobel slowly hauled herself out of bed and pulled out her new uniform: A crimson shirt and black trousers, she had been very insistent.

"Do you have to make so much noise?" Terri moaned, turning over in a pitiful attempt to get comfortable again. "My shift doesn't start for another hour!"

"Tough!" Isobel could not hide the laughter from her voice. "Mine starts in ten minutes." She began to tie her black hair into a rough pony tail. "If punctuality is not one of the finest of British traits then-"

"Shut up Issy!"

"Don't call me Issy!" Isobel hissed, tensing her body. "Sorry." She turned to Terri and shrugged. "Guess I can get a bit touchy."

"You don't say!" Terri pulled her duvet up to her nose and closed her eyes. Isobel grinned to her self jocundly and began to make her way to the engine rooms.

Situated at the bowls of the ship were the engine rooms, cavernous rooms constantly buzzing with the humming of machinery. Isobel took a moment to gaze in wonder at the sheer size of the place: Amber pipes meandered drunkenly around large, lead canisters, a brief examination confirmed that the contents were radioactive- Dilithium probably. "You new here?"

"Oh!" Isobel whipped around and nodded at the engineer looking up at her from his computer. "Yeah, I'm just wondering where to report to."

"Main core." He turned back to his computer. "Unless you're required some where else, then you'll be goin' there."

"Thank you Sir." Isobel quickly saluted and dashed out of the room. Great, she had got lost on her first day, at least the main core was not too far away.

o.0.o

"Jim!"

"What?" The Captain ceased talking with Sulu and Chekov and turned to the ships Doctor.

Bones waved a tricorder in front of Kirk's face. "You've skipped your medical, again!"

Kirk rolled his eyes and flopped down on his chair. "Fine!" He winced as Bones jabbed a hypospray into his neck. "Why do you have to be such an arse Bones?"

"It's my job." Bones shrugged and gave Kirk another injection. "To be an arse and make sure the serum is not rejected or your arse will not end up dead, again." Kirk flinched as the rest of the bridge glanced nervously up at him. Khan's attack was still vivid in their memories. Bones sighed and pocketed the hypospray. "I expect to see you at six for another hypo."

"Whatever Lenny!" Kirk jeered. He spun his chair around and pocked his tongue out at Bones who simply sighed and stormed off the bridge. Why had Kirk given him that stupid nickname? Kirk flicked the switch on his chair that controlled the communicator and leaned closer. "Kirk to engineering. Is the core ready?"

"Nay Cap'in." The voice of the Head engineer blared around the bridge. "Turns ou' tha' Mr Chekov did more damage then we though'."

Chekov turned an alarmed shade of magenta. "Eet vas an eccident Meester Scott."

"Aye, I'm sure i' was laddie." The Scotsman chuckled, "I've seven Ensigns wor'in' on i'. She'll be swimmin' again soon enough!" Scotty turned off his communicator and ran over to where seven Ensigns were frantically working on the core. "C'mon ye wee bastards." He leaped to the side as a jet of sparks shot up from the floor. "Comman' wants us te ge' this thin-"

"Done!"

"Wha'?"

"I said I'm done Sir." The Ensign snapped.

"Righ', well..." Scotty's voice trailed off absently. "Ye'd be''er be findin' somthin' else then."

"Yes Sir!" The Ensign raised her goggles, saluted Scotty and sprinted away in the opposite direction.

Scotty shrugged and went to check the core to see if the Ensign really had finished mending the core, to his surprise, she had. "This is good." He muttered, "Very good." He turned to one of the other engineers and shook him roughly on the shoulder. "Oi laddie! Who was tha'?"

"Not sure." The engineer called, "She's new though!"

"Aye, I ca' see tha'." Scotty snapped, "Ney manners she's go'." The engineer wrinkled his nose and shrugged. Scotty sighed and walked off in the other direction, feeling slightly peeved.


	7. Chapter 7: Spectrum analysis

"There you go."

"Ta." Isobel sniffed the pile of synthetic gloop on her plate tentatively. It smelt rather oddly like strawberries for what was supposed to be stewed pork.

"Isobel!" Terri called Isobel over to a table and shifted along the bench to make space for her. "Sorry 'bout this morning."

"Don't." Isobel snapped, she hated it when people got emotional. "Everyone can be a bitch in the morning."

One of the science officers sitting opposite Terri burst into raucous laughter. "That's just like what her old roommate would say!"

"Okay..." Isobel took a nervous forkful of food and chewed it thoughtfully. "Is that a good thing?"

"Yes." Terri hissed. "Harriet was an engineer, like you. She died in the Khan incident last year. You know about that?"

"Of course." Isobel took a moment to observe the other people on her table. The man who had spoken earlier was middle aged and Filipino, the two women at the other end looked Germanic. "Everyone's heard of the augments."

Terri nodded and began to tuck into her food. "So, how's your first day?"

"Great!" Isobel mumbled through a mouth of stew. "Already done work on the core."

Terri nodded, no idea of what Isobel was talking about. "Was it fun?"

"Yes!" Isobel's eyes suddenly became overly bright and eager. "Really fun." She grinned at the rest of the table before taking another forkful of food. "Did you have a good mornin'?"

"No!" Terri sighed. "I was just sitting at my post. Datu had something to do, didn't you?"

"Not much." The Filipino sighed. "A new star system's been discovered on the boarders of Federation Space, we've been performing a spectrum analysis to see if there are any signs of life.

"And was there?"

"Yes!" Datu's eyes brightened. "A high quantity of methane gas in the atmosphere suggests that there is organic matter on the surface." He flattened some charts out on the table. "Each of these lines signals the presence of a certain chemical element."

"That's where I come in." Terri took out her pen and made a few marks (Do Datu's distaste) on the spectrum chart. "I look at the results and work out if the gas occurs naturally or was put out by something on the surface." She made a few more notes. "They seem quite advanced," She muttered. "Of course I'm no xenobiologist but I can tell they were moderately advanced. Or in the words of the ship's doctor: I'm a chemist not a xenobiologist." She pocketed her pen and grinned at Isobel. "That's just one of the things I do."

"Sounds fun!" Isobel glanced at her watch. "Bloody Hell, I'm gonnna be late!" She downed the last of her tea and pushed her leftovers towards Terri.

"Hang on," Terri grabbed Isobel's sleeve and pulled her down. "You've only been here for a few minutes!"

"So?" Isobel pulled herself away from Terri. "First impressions!" She straightened her shirt and dashed out of the canteen.


	8. Chapter 8: Calliope VI

The bridge crew in took breath sharply as the planet came into view. It looked a lot like earth; only greener, larger and with no moon. Nyota Uhura had seen many planets in her time in Starfleet. But the close resemblance to her home planet struck a chord deep inside her heart; she expected her fellow humans would be feeling the same. "Lieutenant." Uhura snapped upright in her chair as her earpiece broadcasted the voice of the captain into her ear. "Run complete scan for any transmissions from Calliope VI."

"On it." Uhura spun in her chair and began to scan all frequencies for any signals. Her brow furrowed in confusion as the readings came on screen. "Captain, I'm," She repeated the scan. "That makes no sense!"

"What is it Lieutenant?" She could hear the concern in Kirk's voice.

"There's nothing there. All readings are blank." She stared in puzzlement at the blank readings on the screen. "If they'd left a signal of any kind, it must have been a real long time ago that they did." Uhura leaped up from her post and surveyed the Calliope VI on Sulu's monitor. "Captain!" She placed her hand to her earpiece. "I'm coming with you." She turned to leave the Bridge but found Spock's arm blocking her.

"I do not think your decision is wise." He said. Although the tone was gentle, the sentence stung Uhura. "We need you on the Bridge."

"You know what Spock?" Uhura stepped back and glared into Spock's brown eyes. "You're wrong!" She paused and drew herself up to her full height. "The chemists have confirmed that the gases present in the atmosphere point to advanced inhabitants. The lack of transmissions worries me, Spock, they could be walking into some kind of trap." Uhura swallowed hard, suddenly aware of how hard her tone had become. She wrapped her arms around Spock's neck and kissed him on one of his pointy ears. "Look Spock," She whispered, stroking the back of his head. "I love you. But you've gotta realise that need me down there. If there're a few Klingons, a rouge Orion or something else, they'll need me."

When Uhura finally let go, Spock took her hands in his own and touched foreheads with the linguist. "Well," He murmured, "As I believe Doctor McCoy would say: 'Go knock yourself out!'." Uhura smiled in gratitude and positively dashed off the Bridge. Only when Spock was reclining into the Captain's chair did he realise that the whole of the Bridge crew was staring in his direction. "What?" That single word seemed most alien when it came from a Vulcan mouth. "I am afraid that I do not understand what all of you find so amusing."

"Sorry Sir."Sulu chuckled, "I will try to be more," He grinned at Chekov who burst into a fit of quit giggles. "Reserved in the future."

"Mr Chekov, please calm yourself." Spock seemed to wave Sulu's comment away to scold the sniggering Russian.

"Aye Sir, zorry Sir." Chekov straightened his back and quickly resumed his usual manner.

Spock flicked the switch on the Captain's chair that opened the communicator and leant closer to the microphone. "Bridge to Transporter room, please alert away party to receive Lieutenant Uhura."

"Aye Commander." The Engineer severed the link.

**A/N  
Sorry for the long wait for this chapter. I have been: Working on my Sherlock fanfiction, writing my original work and away from reliable wifi (DAMMIT!). Please continue your support for this story, the opinion of the public is something I appreciate greatly.**


	9. Chapter 9

The familiar tingle that accompanied teleportation faded from Uhura's hands and she took her first breath of the alien air. Like Earth, the sky of Calliope VI was a shade of deep blue with pale grey clouds streaking across it. But unlike Earth, it had two, dim suns. "Beautiful," Uhura muttered, surveying the mountain range on the horizon. "Absolutely beautiful." She was jolted from her peaceful state of mind by the sound of Kirk and Bones arguing, a couple of red shirts looking on in confusion. "What is it?" Uhura rushed over to them and glanced at the map on Kirk's tricorder.

"It's three miles to the nearest settlement." Kirk said, pointing at a red circle on the screen. "If we can get there, we can gather the information and beam aboard before-"

"I don't like it." Bones was resting his head on his hand in the same way he did if one of his patients was dying. "The chemists may have confirmed a high concentration of methane in the planet's atmosphere, but you know what produces methane besides industry? Decay, Jim, organic decay. I'm not a biologist but dammit Jim, I know a lot about decay, I _am_ a Doctor."

"Yeah, I know." Kirk opened up his communicator and held it in front of him. "Kirk to _Enterprise_. Do you have our location?"

"Aye Keptin." Chekov's voice came through the communicator. "You are located et 593187 wiz a citee to ze north. Suggested course of action ees zat you head zere immediately."

"Thank you Mister Chekov." Kirk replied. He clapped Bones on the shoulder and began to walk north, Bones, Uhura and the red shirts following behind him.

"Are you okay?" Uhura noticed how nervous Bones looked. It was an odd look for him, the lines on his forehead became all the more prominent and his bushy eyebrows were set low on his eyes.

"Do I look it?" He snapped, "There's no smoke coming from the city. Doesn't that worry you?"

"No." Uhura shielded her eyes from the dual suns and looked for any signs of smoke in the sky. To her surprise, the doctor was correct.

"You rarely see a city with no smoke, even an alien one." Bones picked up pace and caught up with Kirk. "Look Jim-"

"WHAT?!" Kirk snapped round and roared in Bones' face.

"You see any smoke there?" Bones snapped, gesturing at the city. "No you don't. And you don't see a city, especially an _industrial_ one, without smoke or something like that."

"How d'you know that Sherlock?"

"At home I was surrounded by old cotton mills." He continued. "Now those over there look a lot like cotton mill chimneys. But they're dead Jim, nothing's working."

"Well maybe it's their national holiday." Kirk snarked. "C'mon." He beckoned to Uhura and the red shirts. "We've gotta get there, quickly."

As Bones predicted, the streets were deserted. The architecture was rather ugly in comparison to the dramatic mountains that lined the horizon: The hollow, cube shaped buildings reminded Bones of European buildings two hundred years earlier, ugly and compact. "See what I mean?" He said. "There's no one here."

"Would you just shut up Leonard?" Kirk hissed. He could not help but think that his friend was right, though. The only things he could hear were the sounds of his own footsteps and the wind whistling through the empty streets. That troubled Kirk greatly. As a Captain he had visited many alien cities or outposts around Federation Space, always they were hubbubs of noise and sound, never like this.

"No." Bones snapped, "Look Jim, there's no one here."

"Yes there is!"

"No there's not!" Bones clenched his fist and swung it onto Kirk's nose. It hit Kirk's nose with a sickening crunch and triggered a river of scarlet blood that ran into his mouth.

Uhura had had enough. She rushed forward, jacknifed herself in between the two of them and ducked as Kirk lunged at Bones. "Stop it!" She leaped to the side as the two of them lunged at each other. Men! Always unable to control themselves when arguing, never able to discuss their points democratically. "Honestly." She muttered, "You can't do anything, can you?" No reply. Uhura leant back on the building behind her and noticed there was a wooden door. Curious to see what was behind it, she raised her fist and knocked hard. "Hello?" No signs of life came from inside. "Hello!" She kicked the door hard and slammed her shoulder into it, forcing it open with a low creak. Upon seeing what was inside the building, Uhura's hand flew to her mouth to stifle her scream. "Oh my God! Captain!"

"What?" Kirk and Bones stopped trying to kill each other and ran over to where Uhura and the red shirts were peering in through the door. Kirk was sure his heart skipped a beat, the scene inside was horrific. "What the-"

"They're all dead!" Bones exclaimed. The floor was strewn with dozens of festering corpses. From a distance, neither Kirk nor Bones could tell what species they were. All they could see was that the aliens were humanoid and stocky with exceptionally small sockets that (Kirk assumed) once held their eyes. And the smell was simply overpowering: A mixture of rotten herring and fermenting grapes. They looked like they had died violently, thrown unceremoniously into a heap once they had either been shot or hacked to death.

"I can see that!" Kirk snapped. "But how?"

"I'm not sure." Bones and Uhura rushed over to one of the bodies and began to examine it. "He's been dead for a while though, I'd say a few months at least."

"Ok." Kirk knelt down next to Bones and ran his knuckles over the dead alien's face. "You two," He pointed at the red shirts who jolted to attention. "Go and have a look around. Be careful though," Kirk glanced at the ceiling. "This thin' could fall down at any minute." The two red shirts saluted the three officers and strode into the adjacent room.

"Lieutenant, can you see any blood stains?" Bones sighed as he retracted his hypospray to find it empty.

"No Doctor."

"Great." Bones grabbed a handful of the alien's hair and pulled hard, ripping out a fist full of hair. "Could you see if there're anything that could tell us what attacked them?"

"Ok." Uhura was about to examine the doorframe when the ground seemed to jump from under her feet and she fell on her chest. Winded, Uhura scrambled to her feet and shook the dust off her jacket. "Was that an Earthquake?"

"I guess." Bones sealed a couple of flesh samples in a plastic bag and packed them in his bag. "If you can call it that."

"They're dead!"

"Who?"

"Our red shirt," Kirk panted. "Crushed."

"Told you Jim," Bones snapped. "We shouldn't have come here." He staggered to his feat and joined Kirk and Uhura. "Have you found anything?"

"Umm, yes." Uhura pointed at a few red streaks on the door frame. "These." Using a scalpel, Bones leaved off a piece of wood and sealed it in a bag. "I doubt you'll be able to get any DNA from that but-"

"It's worth a shot." Kirk opened his communicator and stepped into the street. "Kirk to _Enterprise_," He began. "Beam us up."

"Aye Captain." The engineer on the other end of the communicator muttered. "Locked on the three of you Sir, don't move, energizing transporter." The familiar tingle returned to his extremities as the small beads of light began to circle him and he was beamed back aboard.

**A/N  
Here are my wishes for you all: Happy New Year, Happy Christmas, Happy Sherlock Series Three, Happy Peter Capaldi (WHY?!) and two years to go until the Star Trek 50th anniversary. Please continue the support for this story and thank you all for reading this far. The story is finally getting going.**


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